DETROIT – Scratching a veteran defenseman who is accustomed to playing every game and expects to be in the lineup every night is not an easy task for Detroit Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde.
But depth on the blue line is a luxury, and tough decisions are better than easy ones.
Lalonde scratched Olli Maatta in the opener and Jeff Petry on Monday, dressing all seven defensemen in the game in between.
“We try to be as direct as possible,” Lalonde said. “We brought them all in had a little camp, spoke to all of them in the summer. Just because of the way it played out. I know it wasn’t ideal. Did not love sitting Olli or Jeff. They handled it really well. Someone’s number will get called again. I’ll do the best I can to be as honest as I can and try to get them back in. In time, maybe that’ll play itself out. It can be an injury, or we can hold someone accountable on their play.”
Lalonde said after Tuesday’s morning skate that a pair of defensemen are “nicked up,” nothing long-term. All seven will take part in the pregame skate before tonight’s game against Pittsburgh (7:30, TNT) before a lineup decision is made. He said they will dress 12 forwards.
“Usually when you get news like that in the morning, I wouldn’t say panic, but it’s the last thing you want to hear,” Lalonde said. “With what we have it’ll be seamless after warmups.”
He described conversations with scratched players as positive.
“It really helped that Olli and Jeff handled their turn extremely well,” he said.
“They want instant feedback. They want to know why and they should. It’s just the reality of it. It’s not ideal. It’s gone well so far. We’ll have bumps in the road as long as everyone keeps healthy and playing well. It’s a reality of today’s athlete. Communication, honesty, instant feedback.”
Lalonde added: “I hope we have that problem for a long time; that means all seven stay healthy and no one has separated themselves in a negative way. We still have that spot to maybe hold someone accountable for a poor performance or not having the right approach every day. We’re not opposed at any time to go seven and 11.”
First look at Karlsson with Penguins
The Red Wings have been facing Pittsburgh’s trio of stars – Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang – for many years, dating back to their matchups in the 2008 and 2009 Stanley Cup Final and before. Tonight, will be their first look at the Penguins with defenseman Erik Karlsson, who won the Norris Trophy last season (his third) with San Jose after tallying 101 points.
“Dynamic power play,” Lalonde said. “(Monday)) in Columbus you saw a very active D corps, a talented D corps, and we didn’t handle it well. We got beat up ice a couple times, got some outnumbered looks on the rush and got bailed out by our goalie. Same type of thing, (Karlsson) is just a special player that can add offense from the blue line.”
The Penguins have an aging core, raising their sense of urgency after having their 16-year playoff streak end last season.
“You got one of the best players to ever play the game fighting in the preseason, understanding what the situation is for his team,” David Perron said. “That’s incredibly impressive. Nothing else to say about Sid other than he knows what it takes for when he wants to bring his team into the fight early in the year so that everyone knows they are a team that will contend.”
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